Courage Collectives | Indivisible

Courage is contagious.

And it’s more necessary than ever as we navigate this period of authoritarian breakthrough. Trump and his administration are rapidly consolidating authoritarian power and eroding the norms and institutions that serve as a check on that power.

It’s not too late to stop this takeover, but we must act now to build a society-wide backlash.

That’s where Courage Collectives come in.

Courage Collectives are groups that are organizing the various pillars of support into noncooperation with the Trump administration.

The members of each collective all share an identity within a specific pillar, and use their identity to influence the institutions and people within their pillar to stand up to Trump and refuse to go along with his power grab.

What Are the Pillars of Support?

The Pillars of Support are the organizations and institutions in society that can provide the administration with the power they need to implement policies and wield control.

There aren’t a set number of pillars, but they include Business, Labor, Faith Institutions, Education, Civil Service, and Military/Police. These pillars are made up of different people with different identities, motivations, and interests.

courage collectives pillars image

The Trump administration’s power and legitimacy comes from both active and passive support from the various pillars. But the pillars can erode that power when they refuse to go along with the administration’s authoritarian actions. We need the institutions and people that make up these pillars to engage in mass noncooperation to successfully oppose Trump’s regime and quash his authoritarian takeover.

It’s going to take all of us, leveraging our identities within the pillars of support, to bring more people to our side to fight against authoritarianism. And you’re the ideal person to organize within the pillars you belong to.

Start your own Courage Collective and take action with others in your pillar to take a stand against Trump’s authoritarian actions.

FAQs

Who should start a Courage Collective?

Anyone can start a Courage Collective! We all belong to at least one pillar and can use our identity to push the institutions and organizations that make up that pillar into noncooperation with the Trump administration.

You may already have an idea for taking action or know others that share your identity to take action with—that’s great! Or you may just have a pillar identity you’re passionate about and are just starting to think about how to use that for advocacy—that’s okay too! The Indivisible team is here to support you as you get started.

What happens after I register my collective?

After you register your group, an Indivisible staff member will reach out via email to discuss next steps and provide initial information and resources. The first step will be to schedule a brief initial call to discuss your ideas and goals for our collective.

If I’m already in an Indivisible group, should I also start a Courage Collective?

That depends! The chart below provides some of the main reasons you may want to choose to form a separate Courage Collective or incorporate pillar advocacy into your existing Indivisible group. There is no one-size-fits-all answer here, so choose the path that makes the most sense for your specific circumstances.

Organizing through your Indivisible Group may be right for you if…	Forming a Courage Collective may be right for you if…
While pillar-related advocacy may be part of your work, you also plan to continue engaging in other forms of advocacy, such as Congressional advocacy, electoral campaigns, etc.	You plan to engage primarily in advocacy focused on pushing a specific pillar into noncooperation with the Trump administration.
Most of the people you would be organizing with around your pillar are already in an Indivisible group together.	Most of the people you would be organizing with around your pillar are not already in your Indivisible group.
Any pillar work that you do undertake will mostly be through the national calls to action and campaigns that Indivisible puts out, rather than developing your own campaigns aimed at a specific pillar institution/organization. Example: You plan to primarily engage in pillar work like the Signs of Solidarity campaign to canvass local businesses with your Indivisible group.	You belong to a specific or niche institution/organization within a pillar that you want to focus your advocacy on (that would be unlikely to be the focus of a national campaign) You have an idea for a pillar-focused campaign that is specific and relevant to a more limited group of people within a pillar identity, or you are interested in developing such a campaign. Example: You’re part of a professional association for teachers and want to organize with other educators to push the association to speak out against the administration’s attacks on public education.
The people with your shared pillar identity that you would be organizing with all live in the same geographic region as you (same town, county, state, etc) Example: Your Indivisible group is based in a college town where most members are professors who want to push the university to stand up to Trump’s pressure.	The people with your shared pillar identity that you would be organizing with do not live in the same geographic region as you, and therefore, you will likely be organizing virtually. Example: You want to organize with your friends from law school and other alumni who are spread out across the country.

If you do decide to incorporate your pillar organizing into your existing Indivisible group, consider forming a subcommittee within the group that leads on pillar campaigns. You should identify who within your group can lead the subcommittee, and consider this an opportunity to develop more leaders within your group! You should let your Indivisible organizer know and then register this subcommittee as a Courage Collective so that you are eligible for funding through the Courage Collective reimbursement program and so we can connect you with other Courage Collectives that are organizing within your pillar.

If you decide to form a separate Courage Collective, you should begin to reach out to other folks you share a pillar identity with to start building interest. You should also register your Courage Collective. After you register, an Indivisible staff member will reach out to discuss next steps and provide initial information and resources.